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Ferguson PD arrests 8 protesters, hunts for cop shooter

FERGUSON, Mo. — Police continued to search Sunday night for a man who shot a Ferguson police officer in the arm Saturday night. The shooting occurred while the male officer was performing a routine check at

FERGUSON, Mo. — Eight protesters were arrested Sunday evening in Ferguson as police continued to search for a man who shot a police officer in the arm Saturday night.

A Ferguson police sergeant said bottles and rocks were thrown at officers Sunday night, and the department requested mutual aid from other police agencies because of the large crowd.

The sergeant said all eight protesters were arrested and booked on failure to disperse and resisting arrest charges. Most were first-time offenders and will be released without having to post bond after they are processed.

Saturday's shooting occurred while the male officer was performing a routine check at the Ferguson Community Center, police said.

Ferguson police spokesman Tim Zoll said the officer was shot in the arm and transported to Barnes Jewish Hospital with injuries that were not life threatening. The officer was released from the hospital Sunday.

Ferguson police tell me as of now, 7 arrests have been made tonight,all 1st time offenders.They will be released without having to post bond

St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar initially said two suspects were sought, but later indicated there was only one assailant. As of Monday evening, the suspect has not been found.

Ferguson made international news last month when a white police officer fatally shot a black teen who some witnesses said was attempting to surrender. Belmar said Saturday night's shooting took place around the same time that two separate protests of Michael Brown's death were taking place, but Belmar said the shooting appeared unrelated to the protests.

The St. Louis County Police Department's Crimes Against Persons Units was leading the investigation.

The officer witnessed a male suspect in the rear of the building, county police said in a statement. When the officer stepped out of his patrol car the suspect fled, and the officer then pursued the suspect on foot.

The suspect, armed with a handgun, fired multiple rounds at the officer during the pursuit. The officer returned fire but there is no indication that the suspect was struck, police said.

As a result of the Michael Brown shooting, Ferguson police have been equipped with body cameras. When asked to provide the body camera video from the shooting, Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson said the officer had a camera, but it was not turned on.

"The officer was conducting a routine building check of a city building that had closed for the night," Jackson said in a statement. "A routine building check ensures that the building is properly secured for the night. At that time, the building was supposed to be empty. He was not expecting to have interaction with anyone and did not have his body camera activated for the routine building check.He was suddenly attacked after interrupting a burglary attempt and sustained an injury from a gunshot. Generally, the body cameras are utilized with any interaction with members of the public and in any situation when an officer feels it is necessary, and has the opportunity to activate the camera."

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Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson said the officer shot in the arm Saturday night was wearing a body camera, but it was not turned on.
KSDK-TV, St. Louis

The suspect was last seen running into a wooded area behind the community center. The Ferguson Police Department, along with several neighboring departments, searched the area for about 90 minutes but failed to find the suspect.

Meanwhile, as protests mounted following the Brown shooting, so too did the public frustration directed at Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon — seemingly, no matter what action he took.

Public records obtained by The Associated Press show that Nixon received thousands of phone calls and hundreds of e-mails, letters and faxes from people throughout Missouri and the world in the weeks after the Aug. 9 shooting. Most of the correspondence was critical of the governor — first for not intervening quickly enough as armored police fired tear gas on protesters, then later for appearing to call for the prosecution of the white officer who shot the black 18-year-old while the investigation is ongoing.

The documents display a diversity of public outrage. Some people blamed Nixon for a heavy-handed police response to protesters. Others chided him for not publicly doing enough to support police. Some comments were crude and profane. Others offered advice on how to restore peace in the streets from people emphasizing their expertise.

Nixon said he read none of it — though his staff did — because he was so focused on getting the difficult situation under control.

"There aren't a lot of ways to deal with shootings of this nature, conduct of this nature, that don't touch a lot of very emotional, value-laden positions that Missourians hold," Nixon said.

From a public perception standpoint, "it's kind of a no-win situation" for Nixon, said Eric Morris, an assistant communications professor at Missouri State University.

"There were substantial numbers of people with strong feelings on both sides of it, which means there's literally no action you can take in the middle that's not going to get you probably criticized," Morris said.

The night after Brown's death, peaceful protests turned violent as crowds looted stores and clashed with police. Those protests continued for days. Copies of Nixon's daily schedule previously provided to the AP show that at first, he split his attention between dealing with the unrest in Ferguson and performing routine duties such as public appearances at schools and the State Fair.

"Your leadership is needed in St. Louis in light of the Michael Brown shooting. People are angry and hurt. Please consider a visit soon," Elizabeth Macheca, of the St. Louis suburb of Brentwood, pleaded in an Aug. 12 message to the governor.

Nixon visited the area that night, participating in a community forum at a church.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, left, greets soldiers at Bagram Airfield during a surprise visit to Afghanistan Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014. Nixon and three other U.S. governors made the surprise visit as part of a delegation to receive counterterrorism briefings and greet troops stationed there.(Photo: Courtesy of the office of Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon)

But he continued to get messages urging him to intervene to restore peace. One woman, who said her adult daughter was at a friend's nearby apartment when Brown was shot, wrote that she held Nixon "personally responsible for the chaos that has occurred."

"Governor, your state looks like a war zone. Think you should be present in Ferguson to help diffuse the situation," Kathy Grab, of Philadelphia, wrote as police confronted protesters the night of Aug. 13.

Nixon traveled to Ferguson the next day and put the Highway Patrol in charge of security instead of the local police. He got a few compliments — "Bravo ... This is the most common sense decision that has been made," wrote Laura Seithel, of the St. Louis suburb of Ballwin.

As the clashes continued, Nixon declared a state of emergency, imposed a curfew, lifted it and called in the National Guard to help protect the police command center. On the evening of Aug. 19, Nixon released a videotaped statement vowing "to protect the people of Ferguson" and stating: "A vigorous prosecution must now be pursued."

The public reaction received by Nixon's office was overwhelmingly negative. The call for "vigorous prosecution" is "an outrageous rush to judgment" against Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson, wrote George Little, of the St. Louis suburb of St. Peters.

Law enforcement officers and their families took particular offense to Nixon's comments — "They were rude, biased and unwise," wrote Fresno County, California, Sheriff's Deputy Chris Curtice.

Nixon's office issued a clarification that his words weren't intended to prejudge the officer but to refer to the full duties of the prosecutor.

Yet Nixon was questioned about the statement last week by a student at a Boonville High School assembly.

"What I was trying to say, whether the words were aptly chosen or not, was that let's get this process moving," Nixon responded.

Morris said the governor's "vigorous prosecution" comments were indicative of the challenge he faced trying to communicate with members of the public who have polar-opposite perceptions of police as worthy of distrust or respect.

"I don't see how you're going to get those two sides to come to much agreement about what the situation in Ferguson is, or what it represents," he said.